A month or so ago, the kind folks at Lauren Edward (a husband/wife film production company currently residing in our neighborhood) spent a few hours filming my son for the opening video for this week's CEOs for Cities conference, hosted in Cincinnati. Not only does the conference look awesome, but the video really makes our city look like magic, doesn't it? (And my son looks pretty awesome, too...)
This week, our city also hosted a GOOD Ideas for Cities event. I RSVP'ed for the event, but did not end up attending. I opted, instead, for letting my son play with the kids on the street while my husband and I chatted with our neighbors.
It's a great time to be in Cincinnati, isn't it?
Did anyone attend either of these events?
Tell me what happened!
Any good ideas going around?
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Check This Out: Humans of New York
Design Mom just turned me onto this wonderful Tumblr feed...
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| Photo property of Humans of New York |
As if we needed to be reminded the depth of people-watching available in cities.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Go Play Outside: Sharon Woods
Did you know that it's only $10 a year for access to all of Hamilton County's amazing parks!?
Since I moved to Cincinnati nearly seven years ago, I've only gone two years without a Parks pass. But, to be honest, I haven't used any of the passes very often. I usually just consider it a $10 donation to the Park District. This year, though, I'm making an effort to explore the parks with my kids.
Recently, we took two trips to Sharon Woods, which is the park I know best because we have some good friends whose property abuts the park.
Wanna see some photos of trips!?
Since I moved to Cincinnati nearly seven years ago, I've only gone two years without a Parks pass. But, to be honest, I haven't used any of the passes very often. I usually just consider it a $10 donation to the Park District. This year, though, I'm making an effort to explore the parks with my kids.
Recently, we took two trips to Sharon Woods, which is the park I know best because we have some good friends whose property abuts the park.
Wanna see some photos of trips!?
Friday, February 17, 2012
Check out this AWESOME blog.
I discovered a new(ish) blog a while back and am LOVING it. It chronicles a family's relocation to Manhattan and their adventures as they acclimate to city life. Not only do I love their style, but I absolutely love that they are a family of five!
Check it out: nyc taught me
Check it out: nyc taught me
Thursday, January 26, 2012
Saturday, January 7, 2012
The "F" Word.
Here in the Twenty-first Century, there are still a few taboos that our enlightened society can't seem to rise above. One of them: Faith.
This seems particularly true in areas like architecture and urban planning, where it's presumed that all "people of faith" have bad taste, are afraid of progress, hate cities, and want to live in McMansions in the suburbs. These stereotypes are not completely unwarranted; there are factions of the Christian faith that are in opposition to contemporary voices in culture and urban life. But this small percentage does not speak for the whole.
Faith is particularly taboo in the academic realm where students are told to check their religious lives at the door and, consequently, never have a chance to develop the relationship between their private faith and their career. (Check out Ben Stein's Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed for his perspective on how this plays out in the realm of science.) This produces a lot of young people who believe they have to choose between two things they are passionate about: their faith and changing the world.
Is it possible to have both?
Some of us believe so.
A friend of mine, an urban planner in a moderately large city, recently asked me how I navigate my work in the public realm as it relates to my faith. Her experience is that Christians (especially of the conservative vein) are, at best, a joke in the city planning world. Now, my work in community improvement is not nearly as "public" as her position with the city. But, she has heard me speak (and write) quite a bit about how my faith informs my views on politics, community development, and urban life. And she was curious how I manage being an "eco-friendly, urban, transit-loving, libertarian Christian" (her words--not mine) without feeling emotionally crushed while working with my peers.
A blog I frequent--Urbanophile--recently posted a link to an interesting podcast on this issue. You can access it here.
The basic gist of the podcast is this: historically speaking, faith has always been a prime motivator in public life, for progress and justice. So, why do we ignore this connection when training those to whom we entrust our public life?
There is a lot of discussion in Christian circles these days about urbanism and how the Church should address issues related to city life and urban culture. But, the secular arena doesn't seem very educated about the contemporary Christian perspective--and they definitely ignore the historic one.
I'm fairly new to the conversation and definitely don't claim to have all the answers for how faith and public life are supposed to intersect, but, I am convinced that I need not "check my faith at the door" in order to have something to contribute to the broader conversation.
And I would encourage any young, passionate "people of faith" to pursue the health of their faith and the welfare of their city.
Maybe we can have both.
"But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare." - the prophet Jeremiah, Old Testament.
This seems particularly true in areas like architecture and urban planning, where it's presumed that all "people of faith" have bad taste, are afraid of progress, hate cities, and want to live in McMansions in the suburbs. These stereotypes are not completely unwarranted; there are factions of the Christian faith that are in opposition to contemporary voices in culture and urban life. But this small percentage does not speak for the whole.
Faith is particularly taboo in the academic realm where students are told to check their religious lives at the door and, consequently, never have a chance to develop the relationship between their private faith and their career. (Check out Ben Stein's Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed for his perspective on how this plays out in the realm of science.) This produces a lot of young people who believe they have to choose between two things they are passionate about: their faith and changing the world.
Is it possible to have both?
Some of us believe so.
A friend of mine, an urban planner in a moderately large city, recently asked me how I navigate my work in the public realm as it relates to my faith. Her experience is that Christians (especially of the conservative vein) are, at best, a joke in the city planning world. Now, my work in community improvement is not nearly as "public" as her position with the city. But, she has heard me speak (and write) quite a bit about how my faith informs my views on politics, community development, and urban life. And she was curious how I manage being an "eco-friendly, urban, transit-loving, libertarian Christian" (her words--not mine) without feeling emotionally crushed while working with my peers.
A blog I frequent--Urbanophile--recently posted a link to an interesting podcast on this issue. You can access it here.
The basic gist of the podcast is this: historically speaking, faith has always been a prime motivator in public life, for progress and justice. So, why do we ignore this connection when training those to whom we entrust our public life?
There is a lot of discussion in Christian circles these days about urbanism and how the Church should address issues related to city life and urban culture. But, the secular arena doesn't seem very educated about the contemporary Christian perspective--and they definitely ignore the historic one.
I'm fairly new to the conversation and definitely don't claim to have all the answers for how faith and public life are supposed to intersect, but, I am convinced that I need not "check my faith at the door" in order to have something to contribute to the broader conversation.
And I would encourage any young, passionate "people of faith" to pursue the health of their faith and the welfare of their city.
Maybe we can have both.
"But seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare." - the prophet Jeremiah, Old Testament.
Monday, January 2, 2012
45202 Families
Parenting in an urban area can be a little isolating.
90% of the peers you see on a daily basis are either child-less or live 20 minutes away. It can be hard to make friends and stay active in your own community.
But most of us are on Facebook these days, right?
A few weeks ago, I started a Facebook group for "45202 Families."I'm hoping this group will be a way to connect folks who live, work, or play downtown so we can share recommendations and plan events.
The group is "invite only," so let me know if you'd like to join!
And I'll try to get around to blogging again eventually...
90% of the peers you see on a daily basis are either child-less or live 20 minutes away. It can be hard to make friends and stay active in your own community.
But most of us are on Facebook these days, right?
A few weeks ago, I started a Facebook group for "45202 Families."I'm hoping this group will be a way to connect folks who live, work, or play downtown so we can share recommendations and plan events.
The group is "invite only," so let me know if you'd like to join!
And I'll try to get around to blogging again eventually...
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